Tales of the Goddess
by atokad11
Summary: A collection of stories that narrate the lives of several characters from the Puella Magi universe if the situations and settings that affected their lives were changed, several different universes with different possibilities for new stories, new adventures and a new look on the characters from this universe. Each chapter is a different tale. Enjoy n n
1. Prologue: A Gate to Another Worlds

"**Prologue"**

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What is wrong?

Are you ok? You seem sad…

You've met a terrible fate you say? No wonder why you ended up here.

It is such a shame what happened to you, so young and with a promising future ahead…

…All has been unfortunately cut off by the cruel and unforgiving hands of fate, so sad.

Do not worry, you are now here, here you will rest in peace, a much deserved reward considering all the suffering you've gone through.

But I still see some sadness in your eyes, doesn't the promise of eternal peace makes you happy?

I understand…you wonder how would your life have been had things played out different for you.

It is normal; humans are curious creatures who always wonder these kinds of things.

I like you; normally I shouldn't be doing this as the knowledge of these things might drive humans to insecurity and a devaluation of their own lives or worst.

But that only applies to people who are living; you are now in the eternal rest now.

Very well, I'll give you a chance; I'll give you a unique gift…

I'll give you the chance to see yourself in other lives…

Right now, there are many different versions of your world, of your universe existing at the same time going side by side to the other.

There is one version of you in each and every one of those universes; they are not the same as you thought, they all have different lives than you, some might still be alive, some were born in a different country than you did, some might have met different people in the course of their lives that led them to have a completely different life than the one you lived.

So many possibilities and alternatives for you, that's the magic of being offered many paths to take in life, seeing how you would have grown and lived if the elements that defined your life were altered.

With my power I can give you the chance to witness a few of these lives, just so you will know what could have your life been in other circumstances.

Would you like to do it?

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You want to do it?

Excellent, you are a curious person, I like that.

Prepare then, stand by my side, I'll take you to some of these universes and I'll be your guide showing you things that happen and how your life was in those universes.

It's going to be a fun ride I promise you, even if sometimes you will find things that played a lot worse than in your universe, don't worry, they will eventually find peace in this place like you have now.

Suffering is something bad, but sometimes good things come out of it, it shows you what it means to be on the other side, making you appreciate the happy moments you have a lot more.

It's all part of a system of balance.

Very well then, let's not waste any more time and let's depart on a journey across these alternate universes.

Let's see how your life turned out to be, in another universe, in another time…

…Follow me and let's go.


	2. The Shadows on the Horizon

**=The Shadows on the Horizon=**

Another night was taking place as the hours passed by in the Saloon of the town, the only saloon available in the old town of Asunaro.

The sound of the rain that slowly fell from the sky making sounds as it hit the ceiling of the saloon, a sound that was mitigated by the walls of the building and the ambient inside.

The people who had come that night taking place on their seats and enjoying their drinks all filled with various alcoholic brewages, all looking for different things, some just wanted to have a good and peaceful time, others just were in need of drinking something hard to ease their nerves or perhaps just wanted to forget about a problem that tormented their daily lives.

Whatever the reason, the saloon was full of people that day despite the rain outside the ambient inside was just as vivid and warm as in a clear night with the moon shining upon the town of Asunaro in the middle of the desert, a town hidden from the world within the sands of the miles and miles of desert that surrounded it,

People of Asunaro gathered almost every night in the saloon to drink for various reasons and generally just enjoy a good time.

Tonight was not the exception as people were on their tables drinking their brewages as usual and engaging into different conversations about their lives and the things that happened in the small town.

A particular group of three people were on a table very close to the bar and were in a conversation about an event that occurred in the town that day.

"_Say, did you all hear about the new body that was left right in the doorstep of the station this morning?"_

"_Another victim was found? That's the second body this week…"_

"_And the twelfth since the murders began"_

"_Who was it this time?"_

"_Another pretty girl, probably around the age of twenty, barely starting to see the world"_

"_That's sad; I hope the sheriff gets the son of a bitch who is perpetrating all of these crimes"_

"_I hope so as well, it would be sad to see another kid being murdered like that"_

The men were involved in the conversations as they talked and drank from the jar of beer all of them had on the table.

They referred to a series of murders that were taking place in the city of Asunaro for quite some time, two months to be precise.

The murderer always went after young people, all of them around the age of fourteen and the age of twenty, and most of the victims had been girls.

The murderer probably kidnapped them from various locations around the old town and proceeded to torture them as many of the victims were found with significant injuries and bruises in their bodies that indicated they had been badly beat up before their lifeless bodies were abandoned in front of the Sheriff's office.

It had always been like that since the murderers started, and the authorities of the town still had no clue that was behind these crimes and why they were being committed.

All the people of Asunaro knew was that it wasn't safe for their kids and they were always under vigilance by their parents who feared that their kids might become the next victim of this murderer.

The men kept talking some more about the details of the crimes while they were drinking their beer when their talk was interrupted by one of them saying something that occurred to him and decided to share it with his drinking buddies.

"_You know, I don't think the Sheriff is trying hard enough on this murderer…"_

As soon as he finished his line, the other men drinking stopped and stared at him with seriousness in their faces as his accusations where very hard against the man who was supposed to impose justice in the town.

"_You should be careful son; no one takes kindly here if you don't speak well about the Sheriff"_

"_I know that, but I am just saying, I haven't seen a big effort by the station to get this murderer, everytime another victim is dropped in front of the station he just orders the body to be taken away and he promises to investigate on the matter, yet he never does it or at least I never see a movement done by the personnel of the station"_

"_You know, the kid has a point, I agree with him, the Sheriff doesn't do much to solve the crimes or attempt to catch the murderer"_

"_Maybe he's just busy or doesn't know where to start looking, anyway just forget about it and let the old man do his job, he wouldn't be the Sheriff of this town if he was incapable of catching the murderer, I am confident he will"_

"_Let's just hope not many have to die before he does"_

The men continued to talk as they drank their beers and tried to avoid the subject, it was strictly forbidden in the town of Asunaro to talk ill of the law enforcement organisms, specially about the Sheriff of the town, who for a while now had a reputation of not being very good at his job, a reputation that further deteriorated when the murderers began.

None of the men in the table however, noticed that their conversation was being heard by a person who had gotten close enough to their table to hear the conversation, but far enough to remain undetected.

That was until one of the man talking stood up to get more beer from the bar and noticed this person just laying backwards staring in different directions across the bar as if she was doing nothing of importance at the moment.

This person was a girl, a girl with green curly hair and green eyes and was wearing a red dress that left her back and shoulders exposed and had an open section in the sides where one of her legs was exposed revealing she was wearing heels and fishnets.

It was clear that this girl dedicated to a job that wasn't very glamorous but had a very high demand among men in the town, the kind of job where the girls prove company to the men who need and the ones who can afford it.

The man noticed this girl and interested on knowing why she was so close to their table called her out.

"_Hey you Pretty girl!"_

The girl after hearing the man's voice slowly turned her head to see him; she seemed to be surprised to get called by the man and proceeded to smile at him to hide her impression.

"_Were you calling for me sir?"_

"_Yes I was, pretty girl"_

Said the man as he got closer to the girl, he proceeded to talk to her.

"_What is a pretty girl like you doing near our table?"_

"_I was just resting here my good sir, nothing more"_

"_I see"_

"_Is there anything you would like from me sir?"_

"_Not now sweetheart, it is not the day to have some extramarital fun, that's only for weekends, but I am sure you already know that don't you?"_

"_I…do…of course"_

"_What's your name girl?"_

"_Hi…Hitomi, my name is Hitomi"_

"_I've never heard that name around these parts, where are you from?"_

"_I come from the north good sir"_

"_From the north you say? Are talking about the City of Mitikihara?"_

"_Yes"_

"_A city girl…what's a soft petal like yourself doing in this old abandoned town if I may ask"_

"_Life has been rough to me and after some events, I ended up in this place, so I do what I can to survive, it hasn't been easy but…at least I am alive"_

"_I see"_

The man then proceeded to examine the girl from head to toes and rewarded her with a smile for the view; she was quick to reply with a smile as well when the man continued his conversation.

"_You should be careful pretty girl, you've heard about the murders haven't you?"_

"_I have"_

"_Then you should be careful, I am sure that son of a bitch would love to get his hand on such a precious beauty like yourself"_

"_I mostly stay in this bar, so I am safe"_

"_Of course, that's good for you"_

"_Indeed"_

"_Well Hitomi, I won't take anymore of your time, it was a pleasure talking to you, see you later, have a nice night"_

"_Have a nice night as well good sir"_

Said Hitomi as the man turned and left to return to his table where the other men questioned him about the time he spent talking to the girl.

"_What were you doing with that prostitute?"_

"_I just wanted to talk to her, that's all"_

"_She's a pretty one isn't she?"_

"_She's adorable…but I get the feeling she is too young"_

"_Yeah, those bastards, they get younger girls every time, someone should put an end to these things"_

"_Leave that on the pile of things the Sheriff might never get to"_

"_The sad truth…"_

Said the man as he and his drinking buddies resumed their activities and began talking about other things that had nothing to do with the young girl or the murderers that were going on.

After a few seconds of standing there however, the girl Hitomi left her position and abandoned the area walking across the saloon as people occasionally were caught by her charm but quickly returned to their businesses and their conversations.

Eventually Hitomi reached the back section of the saloon, a place that had poor illumination and was empty…Except for one of the tables where two people were sitting there, trying to remain as far away from the crowd as possible in the shadows and the poor illumination of that area.

However their solitude was interrupted by Hitomi who arrived next to their table where the two individuals turned to see her.

Hitomi did the same and began to talk to these people.

"_I got it"_

Whispered Hitomi while she discretely took a seat next to these two individuals, both of them came out of the shadows and were illuminated by the light.

These individual were revealed to be two girls like Hitomi, but one of them had blonde lose hair and hazel eyes and was wearing a white shirt and brown neckerchief with black lines on the borders and had a pair of light brown jeans and cowboy boots.

The other girl had blue short hair and had blue eyes, she was covered on a black long coat with a light blue shirt noticeable beneath it and she was wearing blue shorts and had a pair of white cowboy boots like the other girl.

The blonde girl looked at Hitomi and proceeded to talk to her.

"_What did you learn Hitomi?"_

The blonde girl asked to Hitomi with a gentle tone and a soft ring to her voice.

"_There have been twelve murders so far Mami, and everytime they just leave the bodies in front of the station, it always happens, the victims are mostly girls around our age and sometimes boys too"_

"_That's repulsive, what does the Sheriff say about it?"_

Suddenly spoke the Blue haired girl with a tone of clear disgust in her voice.

"_He isn't doing much according to what I could hear Sayaka, he just promises he is going to investigate yet he never does it"_

"_Typical, it's the same to all the towns we visit; this one seems to be no difference, all of them are nothing but corrupt scumbags who refuse to do their job"_

Sayaka said with a bit of frustration and anger in her voice, something that her friend Mami backed her up on.

"_It's almost like all of them came out of the same garbage can isn't it?"_

"_It's sad, but it appears we're going to have to get our hands dirty once again Mami"_

"_I know Sayaka, we cannot leave this town in such a deplorable situation, if the corresponding authorities won't do anything about it…maybe we should"_

Mami said to Sayaka as she put an object in her table, it was a white revolver gun with a black pattern on the handle.

"_I find strange that the bodies are always left in the Sheriff's place"_

"_Maybe he is just taunting the authorities since he knows they won't be able to caught him"_

"_Maybe Sayaka…but I have the feeling we should investigate on the matter, I suggest we pay the sheriff of Asunaro a little visit…without him finding out of course"_

"_Very well then, I like that plan Mami"_

"_We better leave now if that's the case"_

Mami and Sayaka picked up all the things they had on the table including a black cowboy hat that Mami proceeded to put on and prepared for another missions, one of the many missions they've had in the pasts, a mission to solve a mystery on a town and bring a criminal to justice.

Sayaka turned to see Hitomi who was just starring at them pleased for what the girls were about to do.

"_Thanks Hitomi, you helped us a lot"_

"_No problem Sayaka, it's the least I can do after you helped me and Madoka escape from that brothel where they had us captured"_

"_How is Madoka by the way?"_

"_She's good, she is currently upstairs in the rooms sleeping; she had a very tiring day"_

"_A tiring day…you're not doing THAT thing as a job aren't you?"_

"_Oh no, of course not Sayaka, we help the saloon owner and in exchange for our help she lets us stay in the rooms, we are saving enough money to return to Mitikihara with our parents"_

"_Good to know that, I am sure they miss you"_

"_I just hope they haven't given up on us and think we're dead or beyond the border…"_

Hitomi was interrupted by Mami when she put her hand on the girl's shoulder.

"_Don't give up hope Hitomi, you're alive, that is enough reason to keep on fighting"_

"_Thank you Mami, please be careful when dealing with that murderer"_

"_We will, just make sure you and Madoka stay safe ok?"_

"_We will good luck"_

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.

.

The rain had stopped and the wind made sounds in the night of the town wet and with many of the buildings with their lights turned off as it was very late now and people had retired to sleep.

However in the middle of the town near the station, two girls were hiding behind two barrels in the streets with a view on the station that was on the other side of the road, covered by the shadows they were vigilant on the station in case the murderer of Asunaro town would appear to leave another victim.

Mami was staring at the station with her friend Sayaka in silence when Sayaka decided to bring up a conversation whispering to Mami.

"_So what are we expecting to find here?"_

"_I not 100% sure Sayaka, something of interest so we can start our investigation"_

"_I hope so, we've been out for a while now and it's freezing out here"_

"_Here…I have some whiskey"_

"_Thank you, I needed this"_

Sayaka took the bottle and drank some of it hoping the liquid will help her resist the chilling night as they spied on the station.

"_This is taking forever, and the lights on the station are turned off"_

"_My feeling is that the sheriff is probably not in there or he is sleeping Sayaka"_

"_You know what? I'll go have a look"_

"_Are you sure?"_

"_Yes, I'll just take a peek on the window; I won't go inside or anything"_

"_Alright then, be careful please"_

"_I'll be ok Mami, just be sure to back me up ok?"_

"_I always do"_

Said Mami as she took out her white revolver and gave Sayaka her blessing to go into her scouting mission on the station.

Sayaka covered herself in her black long coat and proceeded to move as fast as she could crossing the road to get near the station helped by the obscurity of the town that protected her from detection.

After some time she managed to get to the front place of the station and crawling beneath the bottom line of the window stopped there to examine the place.

She laid her head against the wall trying to catch any sound from inside the building with her ears; all she heard however was absolute silence, nothing else, there didn't seem to be anyone in the station.

This gave Sayaka the confidence to stand up and take a look through the window herself, and inside she saw nothing but darkness, however she was experienced to see things better than what normal people could in that situation and was able to caught interesting details, such as the cells that were inside the station were empty and there was no visible human silhouettes in the room.

With all of this information she waved at Mami on the other side of the road indicating her that it was clear and she could reunite with her without any problem.

Mami came out of her hideout and moved carefully toward the position where Sayaka was.

Upon reaching Sayaka she demanded to know what she could find.

"_Ok, there are no lights in the building, not even a candle, everything is absolutely silent and as far as what my eyes can tell me, there is no one inside"_

"_That is strange…you would think an important place like a station would always be under vigilance of some sort, but no, it's empty and dark"_

Mami put her hand around her chin thinking on the possible actions to take from here.

"_Something is not right here Sayaka"_

"_I caught that a while ago Mami"_

"_How sure are you that the building is empty?"_

"_Pretty certain, unless they have the power to merge with the shadows or something like that, I am certain there is no one inside"_

"_Good enough for me"_

"_What's your plan?"_

"_Let's go inside, to the window on the other side of the building"_

"_Alright"_

Both girls went to the other side and approached a small window there that they planned to open and get inside the station for more information.

Sayaka pulled out a knife from her coat and began forcing the window open as Mami was keeping an eye in case something happened.

Sayaka managed to open the window and both girls proceeded to get inside carefully making sure not to step into anything that could cause a lot of noise.

As they got inside, Mami pulled out a lighter out of her shirt and used it to illuminate the room, it was what you would expect from a typical Sheriff station, an office with lots of stuff that included documents and other objects, a closet where there were stuff that the law enforcing man could need and three cells to keep criminals inside that just as Sayaka had seen were empty.

They also noticed the windows had curtains that were open, another odd thing to note about the situation, regardless of that, Mami ordered Sayaka to close the curtains to avoid leaking a lot of light through the window as Mami noticed there were a some lanterns on the table that she took and proceeded to ignite using her lighter giving more illumination to the room.

Once Sayaka was done closing the curtains, she turned to see Mami whose attention was already drawn on the documents in the sheriff's desk.

"_Ok then, we're in, now what?"_

"_Try to look for something unusual, there is a lot of those things in here it seems, I'll check these documents and some of them should have to do with the murders"_

"_Very well"_

Sayaka began walking across the room looking for things that weren't how they were supposed to be while Mami kept checking the documents.

The documents contained information about criminals that were sentenced for various crimes, many of them finished up with a sentenced to be hanged; there weren't many criminal records, indicating that the town of Asunaro probably didn't see crime very often unlike other towns they had visited in the past, but when they did happen, they tended to be very brutal Mami noticed; but much to her surprise, there were no documents about the murders that had taken place recently, it appears that the Sheriff hadn't even bother to register them.

"_Sayaka"_

"_What?"_

"_There is nothing on the murders here"_

"_Are you sure? Did you check everything?"_

"_Yes, every single piece of paper I could find in this desk, nothing had information about the murders"_

"_Hitomi was right…the sheriff of this town doesn't care"_

"_Maybe…"_

"_You think there is another reason why he wouldn't register those crimes Mami?"_

"_Well considering the oddities we've found up until now Sayaka, I guess it wouldn't be a stretch to consider the possibility that MAYBE this sheriff has a reason to not register the crimes…"_

"_Another corrupt scum indeed..."_

Sayaka stopped her talk when she stepped on something that she felt had a different feeling to the rest of the room.

"_Everything ok Sayaka?"_

"_Something feels different about the place I am standing right now"_

Mami leaned to see where Sayaka was standing after bringing the lantern to have a clearer view she noticed there was a carpet in that part of the floor.

"_It's a carpet"_

"_Oh…I thought it could be something more interesting"_

"_Maybe it is…"_

Mami said while crawling and putting the lantern on a side of the floor and examined the carpet, Sayaka did the same.

"_Why would you put a carpet in the middle of the room?"_

"_It is an odd place to put it indeed"_

Sayaka tried to lift the carpet and it was here when she noticed that it was nailed into the floor being unable to remove it with her bare hands.

"_Ok, now THIS is interesting"_

"_I know…we have to remove it somehow"_

"_Leave it to me Mami"_

Said Sayaka as she took out her trusty knife again and began to scratch the thick carpet and slicing it in half, when she was able to open a big enough hole she asked Mami t help her tore apart the carpet.

As both girls were able to remove the carpet by shredding it to pieces, their hunch was rewarded with an unsettling discovery…

"_A trapdoor…"_

"_Looks like this Sheriff has some secrets to hide from the people of this town Mami"_

"_Indeed Sayaka"_

"_Let's open it, what do you say?"_

"_Well we already made quite a mess here, so I don't see how opening the trapdoor would make it worse"_

With that said the girls removed the lock and proceeded to open the trapdoor and see what was hidden beneath it.

As they opened it and gazed on what was inside, they saw what appeared to be at first a dark basement, Mami wasted no time and took the lantern to illuminate a little and saw a ladder leading down into a deep hole underground, so deep that the light was unable to reach the bottom.

"_Some secrets indeed"_

"_I don't know about you Mami, but I get the feeling that if we down there, we'll find what we're looking for"_

"_And if even we don't, we're still going to find something important nonetheless"_

"_Alright, I'll go first, hand me one of those lanterns"_

"_Got it, be careful"_

Mami lighted up another lantern for Sayaka to use as she was getting in position to go down the ladders in the hole.

She handled the lantern to Sayaka and she proceeded to go inside the hole into the darkness to see what was the sheriff hiding beneath the station.

Mami watched from the top as she saw her friend being illuminated as she was heading down deeper into the hole for about a minute until she finally seemed to reach the bottom and proceeded to wave the lantern slightly at Mami, this being the sign that it was safe to go down.

Mami took the other lantern and slowly proceeded to walk down the same path her friend took and eventually meeting up with her.

As soon as Mami reached the bottom and could stand on the floor, a strong smell filled her nostrils, a smell that could only be described as a barrel filled with the remains of cattle whose meat has already been taken out leaving nothing but its organs to rot.

"_Ahhhgh it's awful"_

"_Tell me about it, what the hell is going on in here?"_

"_It does smell like blood"_

The girls used the lanterns to illuminate the area; they noticed there was an underground tunnel that leads to an unknown destination.

"_If we follow that path, we'll find the source of this awful smell"_

"_I can't wait for it, let's get moving Mami"_

Sayaka said as both girls began walking down the underground tunnel toward what they hoped would have all the answers they were looking for as well as the reason behind this mystery.

The girls walked down the path for about five minutes making their way toward the path underground as the smell got stronger forcing both of them to cover their noses from time to time to prevent the smell from annoying them too much.

As they were walking however they noticed something that was different from the path they had been walking into.

"_Mami look, here in the walls"_

"_They are not dirt anymore, this is brick"_

"_There is an underground construction here or something?"_

"_Not only that…"_

Mami used her lantern to illuminate the walls and they were indeed made of brick, she kept moving forward with the lantern near the wall until she eventually noticed some strange marks on the wall.

Upon further inspection, she noticed that these weren't just random marks; they had form and seemed to follow a pattern.

"_What did you find Mami?"_

"_Check this out Sayaka"_

"_Looks like someone drew on the wall"_

"_And these aren't nonsensical symbols…"_

"_And look, there is more over here"_

Sayaka noticed as she pointed her lantern to the other side of the wall where there were even more symbols.

"_It's like some sort of strange alphabet"_

"_Do you recognize any of this Sayaka?"_

"_No, it doesn't match anything I know Mami"_

"_Why would anyone write something like this?"_

It was here when the girls after going silent for a moment analyzing the symbols noticed something hidden beneath the silence.

Sayaka turned to see Mami who just looked at her with a serious expression in her face, no doubt noticing the same thing.

They continued walking forward hoping that whatever they had listened to would become clearer as they advanced.

As they kept walking forward into the tunnel, they noticed that there were more symbols written on the walls and the thing they had noticed became clearer, now they were able to properly recognize what it was.

"_Sounds…I hear sounds"_

"_What kind of sounds Sayaka?"_

"_I think…they are some sort of…chants"_

"_Chanting? How many people are chanting?"_

"_I hear some variation so there is probably more than one person chanting that's for sure"_

"_Ok, prepare your weapons; I think we might run into problems ahead"_

Said Mami as she pulled out a white revolver from her belt and Sayaka reached inside her coat drawing a long machete prepared for anything the end of the path might have for them.

The girls kept walking forward as they noticed the chants getting stronger and clearer; however all they could hear is people talking in an indistinguishable language.

After a couple of minutes they reached the end of the path and in front of them there was a door where some light leaked through the cracks, this indicating that on the other side there was light so they wouldn't need the lanterns if they went inside.

Both girls shut off their lanterns and placed it in the ground, Mami pulled out another white revolver with her now free hand and indicated Sayaka to lie next to the door as they both discussed what to do.

"_Whatever is going on behind this door, sounds like a mass of people chanting or something similar…I think we ran into something ugly Mami"_

"_I have the feeling that the language they are using is related to those symbols in the walls"_

"_It appears there is some secret organization in this town or something, what should we do?"_

"_I don't think just busting in will be a good idea"_

"_No hell no, we don't know if they are armed"_

"_What do you think of the cracks? Can you see through them?"_

"_I can try"_

Sayaka placed her eye on the cracks of the old door hoping to be able to spot something.

All she could see was a hallway leading to what seemed to be a room where there were lights that oscillated back and forth, meaning that the source of the light was probably a fire from a pit or a torch.

She also noticed there was a man staring into the room with his back facing the door; he seemed to be the only person in that hallway.

"_Alright Mami, there is a hallway leading to a room with a lot of light, but there is a man in that hallway, he is not facing the door"_

"_Is he alone?"_

"_Yes, I don't see anyone else in that hallway, if we are fast and sneaky; we can take him out without problem"_

"_Sounds like a plan, I'll do it"_

Mami volunteered for the sneak attack as she reached from her belt and pulling a yellow lasso and began untying it.

"_I need you to open the door as silently as you can"_

"_Alright Mami, you do your thing and leave the rest to me"_

Sayaka reached for the handle of the door to see if it was locked, fortunately for the girls, it was not and she slowly and silently proceeded to open the door.

Despite making some noise, it was covered by the chanting of the people as Sayaka kept opening the door, Mami was behind her spinning the lasso waiting for a moment to strike.

The man in the hallway didn't seem to notice the door opening and was very focused on whatever was going on in that room.

When Sayaka opened the door enough, she indicated Mami that it was ready to do her part.

Mami tossed the spinning lasso toward the man who still didn't notice it flying toward him, the lasso grabbed him on the head squeezing on his mouth rendering him unable to scream as Mami pulled the lasso carrying the man through the floor who was trying to remove it and screaming all in vain.

The girls pulled him toward them as the man tried to stand up but Sayaka was quick to put her foot on the man's chest to prevent him from standing up.

Mami then grabbed one of her revolvers and smiled at the man while she beat him on the head with it rending him unconscious as she said to him:

"_I am sorry sir, it's nothing personal…please have sweet dreams"_

The girls tied up the unconscious man leaving him on the dark tunnel and proceeded to walk through the door into the hallway leading to the room.

As Sayaka closed the door behind them, she held her machete with two hands and Mami held her two revolvers ready to fire should she needed to.

"_Alright, let's sneak on the corner"_

"_Got ya, let's move"_

The girls walked to the corner and set into position so both of them could stare into the room without being noticed and proceeded to watch what was going on in that room.

The girls saw a big room with the structure that resembled a church, but was a lot older and in a deteriorated state, probably the effects of being underground, there were some torches in the pillars holding the structure providing the light they needed; but the important detail was that there was indeed a group of people in the chairs all dressed in black clothes as they were indeed chanting in a strange language.

But what drew the girls attention the most was the altar, in the altar there was a statue of something that the girls had trouble deducing what it was, the only way that could have been described was like a tree without leaves and only branches, branches that reached into the ceiling of the church going through it into an unknown destination and from the trunk of the three like structure there was a hole where a faint light was shinning inside.

"_What the hell is that thing Mami?"_

"_I don't know Sayaka…but this whole thing is just macabre…"_

"_Mami look!"_

Sayaka pointed out in the direction of the altar as a robbed figure came out of a door on the side walking slowly toward the desk as the chanting from the audience increased in intensity.

The cloaked figure reached the table and raised his hands in the air seemingly indicating the audience to stop the chanting as the crowd did stop.

The cloaked figure lowered his hands and began speaking in that indistinguishable language to the audience while Mami and Sayaka just watched at the whole scene perplexed and unable to understand what was going on.

It was in that moment when one person from the audience stood up abruptly as the cloaked figure stopped his speech and the audience stared at the person who had stood up.

There was a moment of silence with nothing going on, the girls didn't know what to do in that moment and could only watch; when suddenly the person in the audience began walking across the chairs into the center of the room to walk toward the altar as the crowd began chanting again.

Mami and Sayaka were in suspense holding their weapons tightly when the cloaked figure approached this person and after staring at the person for a moment muttering some words, the figure lifted a veil that person was wearing revealing that the person in from the audience was a young girl, a girl with very short hair and a skinny figure, the cloaked figure ordered the girl to lay on the table with a gesture, which the girl proceed to do.

Sayaka and Mami were shocked by this and began theorizing what was going on.

"_Mami…it's a girl"_

"_And a pretty young one for what I can tell"_

"_What is going on here?"_

"_It seems to be some kind ritual…a ritual to that weird statue"_

"_So is this a sect that praises some sort of bizarre looking God?"_

"_It seems to be the case"_

"_What does the ritual involve then?"_

A question that was quickly answered as the cloaked figure pulled a dagger from beneath the table and lifted it in the air accompanied by the chants of the people in the room.

"_A sacrifice Mami they are going to sacrifice that girl!"_

"_Oh my god…"_

"_We have to do something! We can't let that girl die"_

"_No we cannot, Sayaka! Get ready…because things are about to get rough"_

Said Mami as she pointed one of her revolvers toward the altar where the cloaked figure was about to perform the sacrifice of the girl as the chants of the audience grew louder and with intensity waiting for the moment where the cloaked figure would let the dagger fall on the girl.

When the figure held the dagger with both hands prepared to stab the girl, everything was silenced by the sound of a gun being fired, a loud noise that was able to make itself noticeable despite the loud chants and as quickly as the sound was heard, the hands of the cloaked figure that were holding the dagger were hit by a small blast of fire that send the dagger flying away and blew his hands.

The audience abruptly ended their chants and the cloaked figure began screaming in pain revealing it to be a man as he fell into the floor bleeding from the explosion, the audience was in commotion wondering what happened, a commotion that was interrupted by the sound of a young girl screaming from the back of the room.

"_STOP THAT RITUAL INMIDIATELY AND LET THAT GIRL FREE!"_

Screamed Mami as she pointed both of her revolvers on different directions while Sayaka was behind her holding her machete in an offensive stance prepared to charge in battle.

The people in the audience stood up and stared directly at the girls who were prepared to battle, some of the people in the audience began chanting in that strange language as they charged toward the girls trying to stop them.

"_Here they come"_

"_Sayaka, go to the altar and help that girl, I'll deal with these people"_

"_Alright Mami, good luck"_

The girls split in different directions as they began working on the tasks they had set up, Sayaka went to the left running trying to get to the altar as some of the people in the audience holding scythes tried to stop her from advancing, Sayaka quickly raised her machete and prepared for the battle.

"_OUT OF MY WAY"_

Sayaka blocked the incoming attacks from the people in the audience with great skill and began fighting them trying to make her way toward the audience.

On the right of the room, Mami began shooting at the people charging toward her making sure to injure them enough to stop them but not enough to kill them.

Mami fired her revolvers that shot blast of some sort of energy that upon impact made a small explosion on the people it hit, hard enough to knock them off.

Firing and running Mami was dealing with them drawing as much attention as she could to help Sayaka by drawing most of the people in the room toward her.

Sayaka on the other hand managed to overpower the people attacking her slicing them with her machete incapacitating them clearing the way toward the altar.

She dashed quickly to that place where the girl was still on the table and the cloaked figure was still twisting in pain in the floor.

Sayaka approached the girl kicking the dagger in the floor as far away from everything as possible and talked to her

"_Everything is going to be ok; we've come to help you"_

However the girl seemed to not respond or react to Sayaka's presence.

"_Are you ok? Say something? What's wrong with you?"_

"_Is everything ok?"_

Mami asked while she also reached the altar having finished dealing with her attackers as well.

"_I don't know, she doesn't respond or anything"_

Mami waved her hands in front of the girl's face, an action that provoked no reaction from the girl at all.

"_She seems to be in some sort of trance"_

"_What do we do now?"_

"_Get her out of here of course"_

When they reached down to take the girl and leave, the cloaked man on the floor called out for their attention.

"_No! You mustn't"_

"_Go to hell creep"_

Replied Sayaka with an aggressive tone, but Mami was interested in knowing what was going on and approached the man for information.

"_Sacrificing living beings against their will is not a good thing mister"_

"_What do you know girl? What gives you the right to come and stop the ritual of prosperity?"_

"_I am sorry, what?"_

"_It is all part of the ritual of prosperity in honor to the God of infinity"_

"_I assume you're talking about that statue over there aren't you?"_

"_He is the almighty god of infinity, he takes care of the town of Asunaro, he provides for all f us and gives us everything we need t survive in this world"_

Explained the man to Mami as he was crawling back to be below the statue of the so called God of Infinity.

"_He came to us one day…to our great-grandfathers and promised us prosperity and everything we desired, and they agreed to his terms, ever since he cares for us in here, he is sleeping on a stone form"_

"_So…that stone statue…is your God?"_

"_It is…and he has always cared for us…"_

The man reached with his handless arm and caressed the statue behind him smiling; a gesture that made Mami feel uncomfortable, then the man then stared at Mami with eyes that denoted absolute insanity.

"_Of course…it wasn't for free…"_

"_What do you mean?"_

"_We had to offer some fresh blood for him in exchange for the prosperity he promised…"_

"_Sacrifices…"_

"_Indeed girl...ever since the time of our great-grandfathers we've been sacrificing some of our children to him for two months every year since then, this year he has asked for more sacrifices than usual, but it has been all worth it…the Town of Asunaro is prosperous and good compared to all the other shitholes in this dammed land"_

It was at this moment that Mami reached an epiphany…

It all made sense in her head now…

"_The murders that has been going on…"_

"_Murders you say? That's just how the ignorant call, the ones who do not know that the goods they enjoy now are the result of those "Murders" they cannot understand it"_

"_Nothing good can be achieved sacrificing people against their will you monster, specially children"_

"_You do not understand stupid girl, young people are incapable of understanding the way things work in the world and they think they can shape the world to their will, but they are just stupidly wandering in the road without directions thinking they know the way…"_

The man pointed with his handless arm toward Sayaka who was holding the girl that was to be sacrificed in her arms.

"_We simply tell them that all the answers they are looking for, will be revealed once they get to meet the God of Infinity who has assigned the task for them, the task to serve him for all eternity with the reward of living in a peaceful world and leaving their loved ones with gifts to make our lives good while we await to join them"_

"_You're sick…"_

"_You might think so girl, but know that most of our children agree to participate, and the ones who don't…well we are forced t drug them a little bit so things will be easier…they might complain, but once they meet up with the God of Eternity…they'll even thank us for making them take the step they were unwilling to take"_

"…_.."_

"_But now…you're ruined all girl…you and your stupid friend have ruined it all…know that the God of Infinity will make you pay for this, he will take away all the good things you have at life, he will leave you in misery"_

Mami reached for the man and with rage and aggressiveness, ripped his cloak off revealing to have a badge on his chest, a shinning badge that made Mami understand everything going on.

"_I knew it…I knew something was wrong with the station…"_

"_I am simply doing my job as the sheriff of the town of Asunaro, making sure everything is running peacefully and in balanced"_

"_A murderer like you has no right to carry that badge"_

"_ALL OF US HERE WILLINGLY ACCEPT THIS GIRL, SEE THOSE PEOPLE YOU AND YOUR FRIEND INJURED OVER THERE?"_

Said the man as he pointed toward the crowd in the audience crawling on the floor in pain from the battle they had with Sayaka and Mami.

"_Those are the parents of all the youngsters that were sacrificed, all of them agreed on this, they talked to their kids and they accepted, we are no murderers girl, we are just doing what we need to do to survive and live in prosperity, that's all"_

Mami was fed up with the words of the man and felt she couldn't stand to hear him anymore, Mami raised her hand and pointed her revolvers toward the man who began laughing at her action.

"_What are you going to do girl? Kill me? That won't solve anything…The God of Infinity will still come after you, and he will leave you with nothing, he will take away your friends, your family…EVERYTHING"_

Mami upon hearing those words changed her expression to one of pure fury and disgust and proceeded to put her revolvers on the man's forehead with brute force preparing to blow his head off with a shot when Sayaka talked to her.

"_Mami stop!"_

"…_."_

"_Listen to your friend girl, just accept the fact that you're doomed now, there is no way you can stop a God like this"_

"_That…is where you're wrong…"_

Said Mami as she retrieved her revolvers from the man and pointed them toward different directions, one toward the pillars on with the torches and the other toward the ceiling above them were the branches of the statue pierced it.

"_What are you doing? STOP"_

Mami ignored the sheriff as she began shooting the torches knocking them out as they fell on top of the wooden chairs igniting them in fire that scared all the injured people that were close by as the flames increased as more torched began to fall from the pillars.

With the other revolver Mami began shooting the branches in the ceiling blowing them off.

The Sheriff began screaming like a madman begin Mami to stop hurting his God and reminding her that his fury would fall upon the girl if she kept doing that.

Mami however aimed both of her revolvers toward the trunk structure of the statue and began firing constantly toward it cracking it enough with the blasts so it would inevitably break and make the statue fall down.

She eventually stopped firing her revolvers as the cracks in the statue began trembling, this being a sign of its inevitable fall.

"_Sayaka, let's get out of here"_

"_Of course, help me with the girl"_

"_Alright"_

As both Mami and Sayaka held the girl on their shoulders and proceeded to walk toward the place they came from, the sheriff began cursing them as the statue began cracking more and the flames in the audience managed to reach some of the people igniting them as well.

When they reached the door Sayaka talked to Mami.

"_Why did you do this?"_

"_Someone who is capable of hurting their children for such selfish reasons does not deserve to walk free in society"_

Mami then pointed out toward the statue of the God of Infinity that was shaking even more violently as it was about to fall down.

"_If their God really exists…let him be the one to decide if they have the right to survive or not…"_

"_Seems fair to me"_

Replied Sayaka as she opened the door where the man they had tied up was still in the floor unconscious, Mami took the girl in trance and carried her on the back and asked Sayaka to drag the man on the floor to be left in the cell of the station where he deserved to be.

"_Ready Mami"_

"_Let's go then"_

Both girls walked outside that church as they closed the doors and walked back toward the station; on their way back they heard a big crash on the distance making a loud noise that made the walls of the tunnel tremble a bit.

They both took it as a sign that the God of Infinity had not been merciful to their followers and continued their road back to the station.

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"_Mmm…"_

"_Good morning girl, I am glad to see you're ok"_

The girl who had been previously on a trance woke up to find herself in what seemed to be an hotel room where she was laying on a bed and next to her there was another girl with pink hair and pigtails taking care of her.

"_Please don't be afraid, you're safe now"_

"_What…what…happened?"_

The girl began wondering as she was trying to remember everything that happened to her.

"_The sacrifice…my parents…they…they made me drink something…I didn't want to….but….I….."_

"_It's ok; my friends got there in time and saved you before those evil men could sacrifice you"_

"_Saved me?"_

"_Yes, over there, they are the ones who saved you"_

Said the pink haired girl as she pointed out to another bed where Mami and Sayaka were sitting looking at her.

"_Good to see you woke up"_

"_We were worried you weren't going to make it girl"_

"_You saved me from the sacrifice?"_

"_Yes we did, do you know why they wanted to sacrifice you girl?"_

"_I…do not…know…I did not want to, I begged my parents not to be part of it…but they didn't listen, they ignored me…they did not care for me…they just gave me something to drink and then I can't remember anymore…"_

"_Don't worry, those evil men will not hurt you anymore girl"_

Spoke the pink haired girl giving the girl who just woke up a glass of water to drink.

The pink haired girl introduced herself.

"_My name is Madoka, I live here with my friend Hitomi, and we can take care of you if you want"_

This reminded Mami and Sayaka that they had to tell the girl about the fate of her parents.

"_Listen girl…I am afraid your parents might have been in the place they were going to sacrifice you and…"_

"_I know…"_

However they were interrupted by the girl who already seemed to know everything

"_They would always go to those meetings with the God of Eternity as they called it…and they would always tell me one day I would join him…and that I shouldn't tell this to anyone or they would punish me…"_

"_I see…were your parents' bad people?"_

"_I don't know…but I never wanted to do any of the things they wanted me to do…I wanted to live…I did not want to join the God of Eternity, I wanted to play happy with my friends and live with my grandma, but they would never allow me to even visit her"_

Sayaka and Mami went into silence for a moment upon hearing this.

"_Are my parents dead?"_

Asked the girl to Mami and Sayaka who were afraid to reply but knew they had to

"_Yes…I am sorry"_

"_We did not want to kill any of them…but the things they were doing were so evil…and if we hadn't done anything, you would be dead like all the previous victims now"_

"_Please don't hate my friends, they are good people that always help everyone they can, trust me, they save me and Hitomi a long time ago from a very evil man who forced us to do horrible things against our will"_

"_It's ok, I am not angry at you"_

The girl said this as she asked Mami and Sayaka to come next to her reassuring them that she had no ill feelings toward them.

"_I am thankful you saved my life…I don't hate my parents…I am sad that they are gone…but at the same time I am even more thankful that I'll be able to live my life from now on without having to hear from the God of Eternity again…that thing who ruined my family"_

The girl smiled to Mami and Sayaka, an action that greatly calmed the anxiety they were feeling.

"_Thank you, can I please know your names?"_

"_Of course, I am Mami"_

"_And I am Sayaka"_

"_Nice to meet you, my name is Michiru Kazusa, and I will forever be grateful to you for saving my life"_

Michiru held Mami and Sayaka's hands as she held them toward her chest and smiled.

"_I am so happy, Sayaka, Mami…you saved the day once again…you are true heroes of justice"_

"_No Madoka, we're not, we just do what we think is the right thing to do"_

"_Sometimes that puts us in dangerous situations you know?"_

"_I know Sayaka, but that's why you are heroes of justice, no matter the difficulties, you always stand up for what's right, and that's why I, Hitomi and now Michiru will always be thankful to you"_

Madoka's words filled Mami and Sayaka with happiness and made them feel good that once again, they had saved someone's life and they had bring happiness to the world they lived in, a feeling they always enjoyed to feel and were happy to get from people, it made them feel confident that their actions were good and the fight was worth fighting.

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"_So…what's going to happen to the town of Asunaro now?"_

"_For starters they are going to need a new sheriff; I hope they get one who truly stands for the side of justice"_

"_I hope so as well…"_

Sayaka and Mami reflected upon the events of their adventure on the town of Asunaro while they were riding two horses, Mami was riding a white horse and Sayaka was riding a black horse and both were about to leave town.

"_Do you think Michiru will be alright Mami?"_

"_She's a strong girl who has suffered a lot, but I am sure she will be fine, Madoka and Hitomi will take good care of her while they contact her grandmother, once she contacts her, she'll go live with her and she'll be able to restart her life once again"_

"_I hope so; those bastards were monsters for wanting to hurt their own daughter, same for the other people who did it before we came…"_

"_Religion can be a thing that can bring peace and meaning to people's lives, but when this one ask you to hurt other people, it has to be stopped before it manages to hurt them"_

"_Indeed"_

Sayaka approached Mami and put her hand on her shoulder.

"_I thought you really were going to execute the sheriff Mami"_

"_I wanted to…"_

"_I know…I don't think I would have been able to hold the impulse myself, I admire you for doing it"_

"_I just thought in my parents, they wouldn't have liked it if I had done something like that, no matter how much that monster deserved to die"_

"_He said that we would lose everything…he did not know we already did…"_

"_No, we still have each other Sayaka"_

Mami said this as she held Sayaka's hand and smiled

"_Remember the oath we made"_

"_We would find those monsters responsible for our disgraces and make them pay for what they had done not just t us…but to everyone they have hurt"_

"_We won't stop until we find those __**Shadows on the Horizon**__…and stop them before they destroy other lives"_

"_And we'll carry on that oath, together Mami"_

"_We will Sayaka, we will"_

Mami and Sayaka held their hands, the hands they used to make that promise many years ago, to find the monsters that one day came and took away everything from both Mami and Sayaka, monsters only known as the Shadows on the Horizon.

And they wouldn't stop at nothing until they find them.

"_Ready for a new adventure Sayaka?"_

"_Lead the way Mami, I'll follow you"_

The heroes of justice rode their horses as they departed away from the town of Asunaro, the town they had saved and freed from the influence of an evil God who had tormented the town hidden on the shadows for generations ensuring that the young people that remained behind like Michiru would not to make the same mistakes her predecessors made and ensure a bright future.

Sayaka and Mami, two girls who rode from town to town in a ruthless and savage world where you had to be fast and decisive to survive, a world surrounded by sands and fields that held unknown mysteries for those brave enough to set into the horizon and explore them.

They headed toward the horizons looking for adventure, saving those in need, making sure they had the chance to be rescued they did not have in the past.

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_**Always riding together, as they promised in the past, into the unknown horizon…**_

…_**The heroes Mami and Sayaka fought from town to town bringing justice to those who needed it, saving those that no one wanted to save…**_

…_**whenever there was trouble, wherever there was injustice, wherever the forces of evil triumphed over the forces of good…**_

…_**The Heroes of Justice will be there to save the day.**_


End file.
